e-Mbizo Solutions Developers has launched a truly remarkable product; the wholly black-owned e-Mbizo Solutions venture is set to bring VOIP to the masses.
The accord, which marks a South African and continent-wide first, provides for a complete free Internet-enabled voice platform for the man on the street through Internet cafés, SMEs and the broader individual household market.
In addition to its current telecommunications and Web services, e-Mbizo will provide free to download e-Mbizo Netphone software from its Web site.
“As a result, besides the telephone, Internet and mobile content services we already deliver, the software will now also offer users a complete `FAX 2 e-mail`, `SMS 2 e-mail` and `SMS Alert` to give the users a value-added advantage, when compared to the other international players,” said Thabo Malebadi, the group`s CEO.
SMS Alert will send users an alert via SMS when other members of their community log in, so the members can benefit from the free calls offered by e-Mbizo to subscribers who are calling each other.
e-Mbizo is expanding rapidly in the VOIP market, where it has hundreds of subscribers since its launch in early November, thanks to the success of its offer. A key factor in this growth, in addition to the free software, the “value-adds”, and the software`s ease of use, is their lowest rates. When compared to US-based companies like Skype, e-Mbizo`s rates are much lower.
Subscribers to the e-Mbizo Netphone offer will enjoy a host of practical and economic benefits, which also integrates with the users` mobile handsets. Once linked to the network, they can also download ringtones and other mobile content at a fraction of the cost, from the Web site and use WAP to make VOIP calls and buy e-Mbizo minutes.
“This offer realises the huge potential of VOIP for an addition of a telephone service with a difference, integrated with mobile phones and interactive applications, at reasonably low rates,” commented e-Mbizo general manager Mmusi Leballo.
“This is a world first for South Africa, which we are also exporting to other African countries, and we are proud that it is based on the technological competencies of the local e-Mbizo group. Today, we are finally delivering the voice service to ordinary South Africans, without the high costs of acquisition,” says e-Mbizo Group Chairman Joseph Malebadi.
It has been earmarked that with South African software development capabilities, the country will draw attention from the international markets. In the telecommunications space e-Mbizo seems to be forging a drive ahead in the right direction.
